Journal of Scientific Engineering Advances

Abstract

This study shows a technical, bioclimatic, and sustainable analysis of the first demountable house built en tirely from glass components, Vitrohouse. The technical analysis details the construction challenges over come to create a desmountable house using only flat glass for all components (foundations, slabs, support ing structure, beams, roof, envelope, furnishings, kitchen fixtures, appliances). Secondly, we analyze the thermal and bioclimatic behavior of this desmountable all-glass house to evaluate its energy efficiency. We also assess the contribution of Vitrohouse’s bioclimatic design to its sustainability level, using 11 of the most internationally recognized Green Building Rating Systems (GBRS), demonstrating that it achieves a higher degree of sustainability than a conventional, non-bioclimatic home of the same size. Thirdly, we analyze the contribution of Vitrohouse’s demountable nature, showing that it has a higher level of sustain ability than a conventionally built house. Finally, the sustainable analysis of its demountability is quan tified using 11 GBRS. The results show that it is perfectly feasible to construct buildings solely from flat glass, achieving high energy efficiency and sustainability. Furthermore, the glass components can be easily disassembled and reused, or recycled to manufacture new components with minimal energy consumption.